Oil and gas stakeholders seek support for science education

In line with the national policy of showcasing projects and initiatives tailored towards the human and national development, the newly launched Science Teachers’ Game (STG), a reality television show took the shine at the maiden edition of the Nigeria Oil and Gas Research & Development Fair and Conference at Eko Convention Centre, Lagos.

The fair powered by the Nigeria Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB), featured experts in the sector, including participants and students from many Nigerian universities.

The Managing Director and Country Chair of Shell Companies in Nigeria, Osagie Okunbor, who visited the STG exhibition booth expressed delight about the innovative concepts around the game and its enabling software, wondering why the advocacy on the project is still poor.

Emphasizing the importance of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) in national development, he said, “We need to encourage our young ones to take more interests in STEM. This project is a great initiative, but you need to make sure that the female components are captured in the project, to encourage more female students to participate.

Meanwhile the STG show, which is for science teachers and students across secondary schools in the country, is powered by an indigenous and 100 per cent local software and technology tagged, “Assppaa-ISBORS.”

This technology according to the Chief Promoter of the STG project and CEO of Laboratory Supplies and Solutions, Ejike Ochuba, connects with science teachers and students across secondary schools in Nigeria, and allows them to showcase their different classroom science experiments on a dedicated portal available at www.assppaa.com.

The Executive Secretary of NCDMB, Engr. Simbi Kelsiye Wabote, stressed the need for Nigerians to use their local resources, both human and material, to develop innovative local technologies that could tackle the challenges of the oil and gas industry, as well as other sectors.

Ochuba in his remarks appealed to Nigerians and other corporate brands to identify with the project owing to its potential benefits in human and national development.